Archive for Quotes

I love a good quote. Here’s my quote collection on topics ranging from writing and creativity to art and how we spend our time.

In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating than going slow. In an age of distraction, nothing can feel more luxurious than paying attention. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than standing still.”

—Pico Iyer, The Art of Stillness

The secret of being a writer: not to expect others to value what you’ve done as you value it. Not to expect anyone else to perceive in it the emotions you have invested in it. Once this is understood, all will be well. Not indifference, not apathy—but self-containment is the result.”

—Joyce Carol Oates

Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.

Choosing authenticity means:

cultivating the courage to be imperfect, to set boundaries, and to allow ourselves to be vulnerable;

exercising the compassion that comes from knowing that we are all made of strength and struggle; and

nurturing the connection and sense of belonging that can only happen when we believe we are enough.”

Mindfully practicing authenticity during our most soul-searching struggles is how we invite grace, joy, and gratitude into our lives.

—Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection

Vulnerability is the center of difficult emotion, but it’s also the birthplace of every positive emotion that we need in our lives: love, belonging, joy, empathy.
—Brene Brown

All the noise in my brain. I clamp it to the page so it will be still.
—Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible

Tell the truth through whichever veil comes to hand—but tell it. Resign yourself to the lifelong sadness that comes from never ­being satisfied.
—Zadie Smith

How you climb a mountain is more important than reaching the top.
― Yvon Chouinard, Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman

In this age of information abundance and overload, those who get ahead will be the folks who figure out what to leave out, so they can concentrate on what’s really important to them. Nothing is more paralyzing than the idea of limitless possibilities. The idea that you can do anything is absolutely terrifying.

The way to get over creative block is simply to place some constraints on yourself. It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limitations mean freedom … Don’t make excuses for not working—make things with the time, space, and materials you have, right now.

—Austin Kleon, Steal like an Artist

Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.
—Gustave Flaubert

The good writer seems to be writing about himself, but has his eye always on the thread of the universe that runs through himself and all things.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson